In an effort to learn about and listen to more music I went down a rabbit hole and started digging up old Billboard charts. In hopes to discover some artists possibly lost to time, I’ve been enjoying scouring these lists and I’m excited to write about it and sent it off to the ether.
I decided to start with 1991 because it was most likely the year where I began to explore and listen to music outside of what I was familiar with. I was nine at the time and was beginning to scan the radio in my bedroom or listen to cassette tapes in my Walkman while laying on my bed.
Starting in January, as most years do, we catch a fair amount of carryover from the previous month. So while singles and albums had likely charted before we start this endeavor, we’ll pretend for the moment that everything began starting now.
By focusing of the top 50 of Billboard’s charts get a better range of songs to get a snapshot of the time. It was also a more consumable amount of music to listen to as opposed to a monstrous amount of a top 100 or 200 songs. Also by having 50 songs at a time, it was easier for me to devise a simple ranked scoring system to determine a month’s-end ranking. Simple like 50 points for chart position number one down to one point for 50th. Add the points and sort them and there you go. I wouldn’t really devote an ounce of stress to this.
When writing about these singles, I will include their rank.
Topping the month of January was Madonna’s “Justify My Love”(1), a simmering lustful song featuring Lenny Kravitz on the background vocals. In fact, the song was written by songwriter Ingrid Chavez about her affair with Kravitz at the time. Madonna’s spoken-word delivery paired with a sample of Public Enemy’s “Security Of The First World” gives “Justify My Love” a palpable lust that further propelled her output in the 90s.
Other big singles include Janet Jackson’s “Love Will Never Do (Without You)”(2), which topped the charts for a week. Whitney Houston has a pair of songs that charted (“I’m Your Baby Tonight”(16) and “All The Man That I Need”(19)) as did Mariah Carey (“Love Takes Time”(23), “Someday”(43)). LL Cool J’s timeless “Around The Way Girl”(27) also graced us this month.
The inescapable “Groove Is In The Heart”(33) by Deee-Lite reached the end of its chart life this month as well. It took me ages to finally warm up to this song, but after many years of tearing a dance floor at a wedding or shimming along to a slide whistle while shopping for groceries late at night, I’ve grown to not just appreciate the song but to champion every moment. From the Q-Tip feature to the sampling of Eva Gabor from the opening theme to the classic television show Green Acres, the groove will work it’s way to your heart. [talk to your doctor about your grooved heart and to see if Deee-Lite is right for you]
I was happy to hear a few songs from artists in their post-peak phase of their careers. I don’t think I had ever heard INXS’ “Disappear”(22) before and it confirms how truly special Michael Hutchence was. While I didn’t exactly care for Robert Palmer’s “You’re Amazing”(34), I was floored listening to “One & Only Man” by Steve Winwood(35). It’s five minutes of dirty white-boy soul and I’m sure it’s been used in many a straight-to-VHS movie montage. I really recommend you check this one out.
Debbie Gibson’s “Anything Is Possible”(32) is a fairly normal pop tune of its time, but I kept coming back to the echo-y glitchy vocals in the first verse. Felt like it took many years for that style of vocals to become more commonplace.
Many a school dance I attended at the time used Stevie B’s “Because I Love You (The Postman Song)”(5) as one of their many slow dance segments. I have no memory of dancing with anybody to this as I was both not the object of affection to any my classmates or I was spending my allowance on the bake sale table. Slow dances come and go, but it doesn’t compare to soft baked brownies with walnuts at a fair price.
Shoutout to the user who posted “Gentle” by Dino (36) on YouTube to help complete the list of the singles that charted in the Top 50 in January. Unavailable on streaming services, this smooth jazzy track leaves a slight breeze against your burning skin while you bake alongside a highly chlorinated pool at a budget motel. It’s itchy and forgettable.
Looking at the albums that charted this month and you can see that the top of the list was dominated by Vanilla Ice’s To The Extreme and M.C. Hammer’s Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em, which were in the heaviest of heavy rotations on my Walkman that year. The new American obsession began topping the chart in both music and television when The Simpsons released their The Simpsons Sing The Blues led by the novelty hit “Do The Bartman” which reached some moderate success despite Lisa playing that damn saxophone.
Madonna’s The Immaculate Collection and Mariah Carey’s self-titled debut record hung around the top of the charts for months to come. Both albums are considered essential pop records and are two of the biggest selling albums of all time worldwide.
Albums That Didn’t Chart High Enough (if at all)
Susanna Hoffs – When You’re A Boy
Susanna Hoffs released her first solo record after leaving The Bangles this month in 1991. Led by the single “My Side Of The Bed” which briefly made the singles’ charts, When You’re A Boy peaked at 83. Hoffs is still releasing music as recently as 2023 with “The Deep End”.(2024’s “The Lost Record” is a collection of previously unreleased material.)
Pitchshifter –Industrial
England’s Pitchshifter put out their first record this month. “Industrial” is, well, quite industrial with its pummeling percussion and dirty, dusty production. Following the contemporaries such as Ministry, Fear Factory, Godflesh, and Pretty Hate Machine-era Nine Inch Nails, this album sounds much different from when I discovered the band with their 1998 album http://www.pitchshifter.com. I once wore a Pitchshifter shirt that read “Fuck All Boy Bands” to school and was promptly told to turn my shirt inside-out. Sorry for disappointing you, Miss Dacosta.
(Important to note that the domain pitchshifter.com is in fact available for purchase for the low price of $18,295. A small investment for rock and roll history!)
Gang Starr – Step In The Arena
Heralded as one of the best Hip Hop albums of all time, “Step In The Arena” feels both timeless and of it’s era. DJ Premier’s production was the optimal template for rapper’s Guru lyrical storytelling. For those unaware of the group or to those not well-versed in the genre, Gang Starr perfected the marriage of poetry and turntables. Whether it is this album, 1992’s “Daily Operation” or 1994’s “Hard To Earn”, you can’t go wrong.
imeanttolisten.com 